Semiconductor chips are routinely manufactured in one or more locations and then transported to a distant location for incorporation into electronic packages or devices. Commonly, semiconductor chips are transported in flat packs. Some flat packs have pockets for transporting the chips. At the point of assembly of the chips into the devices, pick and place equipment, such as, for example, robotic equipment, is used to remove the chips from the flat packs and solder the chips into the devices. The pick and place equipment may be used in conjunction with vision equipment.
Sometimes, chips will arrive at the point of assembly tilted within the flat pack pocket. Other times, the chips have been jostled completely out of the pocket. Due to the improper positioning of some chips during transportation, a percentage of chips arrive at the point of assembly in an unusable state, i.e., broken or crushed. The improper positioning may occur due to the flat pack being disturbed or due to a cover on the flat pack being removed. Even if a misaligned chip is undamaged, vision equipment used in conjunction with pick and place equipment may be unable to identify and properly align the chip.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,833,073 (Schatz et al.) refers to the use of a frame having tacky film for transporting semiconductor chips. However, the Schatz et al. frame lacks pockets into which chips can be placed. Without such pockets, the semiconductor chips may be placed on the film in such a way that the vision equipment may experience difficulty in identifying and retrieving the chips. Further, the tacky film may fall off or lose its adherence to the undersurface of the frame. If the tacky film loses its adherence to the frame, the chips may become damaged. Additionally, certain conventionally used tacky films have adhesion properties which increase over time, thus making it difficult to release semiconductor chips after a certain period of time.
There is, therefore, a need for an apparatus which safely and efficiently transports semiconductor chips while keeping the chips in proper alignment.